How E-inclusion and innovation policy affect digital access and use for senior citizens in Europe

Abstract

Research on e-inclusion and innovation policy on a national and supra-national (European Union) level not always shows to what extent successful e-inclusion and innovation policy have been pursued. Therewithal the aims of national e-inclusion and innovation strategies do not always coincide with the aims of the European Commission. Policies with regard to active aging and senior citizens' participation in the information society on the one hand and local, regional or national initiatives and policy on the other hand might hence be different from the European level. We discuss how e-inclusion and digital access of and use by senior citizens became an important topic in Europe and European policy. We propose not only to focus on a top-down (policy) approach but also a bottom-up approach, where local, regional or national initiatives alongside policy are included in the assessment. We will discuss this on the basis of a literature research together with case studies of The Netherlands and Estonia. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.